Gender Pay Gap in US Basketball: Superstar with part

Breanna Stewart is a world leader in basketball. The 24-year-old American is a four-time college champion and Olympic champion. Last season she won the title in the US professional league WNBA and was also awarded as the most valuable player in both the regular season and the final series. However, Stewart's immense success does not bring her the corresponding income.

It plays as a power forward for the WNBA team Seattle Storm - at least from May to September. With only $ 65,000 in annual salary in Seattle, she travels overseas the rest of the year. There attract teams with sums that exceed the average WNBA salaries many times: According to ESPN some players get there up to $ 600,000.

This practice is widespread in the WNBA: 81 out of 146 players - more than half - play in the winter season 2018/2019 for Turkish, Russian, Chinese and other foreign clubs. Instead of using the months between the seasons for regeneration, the professionals improve their income during this time.

Double exposure increases the risk of injury

In the Euroleague final against Ekaterinburg with WNBA star Brittney Griner Stewart but now tore the Achilles tendon. In a jump shot she landed unfavorably on Griner's foot.

Prayers up for @BreannaStewart who was taken off the court after an awkward landing on her ankle . #EuroLeagueWomen pic.twitter.com/5l89Vd6bsV

Did the additional burden of gaming during the WNBA breaks lead to the injury? "I'm sure it's a key factor," said her father Brian Stewart to Stewart's hometown Syracuse, New York, in the local newspaper Post Standard: "The more you play, the higher the chance that something will happen happened - obviously. "

In the change between the leagues, the players lack the opportunity to fully recover before the next season begins again. "It's sometimes very hard to have high-quality basketball players and players who are at 100 percent when we play all year round and we're all kind of battered," said Seimone Augustus, shooting guard at the Minnesota Lynx, two years ago "The Undefeated".

Until basketball pros are fit for action, six to twelve months usually pass after an Achilles tendon rupture. The five-month WNBA season begins on May 24th. Stewart, last year's best player, will miss the chance to defend the title with Seattle completely. At Twitter she already announced that the operation was successful.

Officially on the road to recovery! Thank you to Dr. El Attrache & Dr. AM for Again, thank you for all the love and support ♥ ️ The get back starts now ... #TheComeback pic.twitter.com/9PEq1odQQq

Stewart's injury contributes to the ongoing debate about equal treatment in professional sport. WNBA players have been demanding fair pay in comparison to their male colleagues for some time now. "Playing abroad should always be a decision, but not a necessity," WNBA Allstar Elena Delle Donne told Thinkprogress after Stewart's Achilles Tear: "There are so many reasons why it makes sense for the NBA and WNBA, Investing in us as a player Injury prevention is obviously a major reason. "

No fair pay for top athletes

The salaries in the men's league NBA are much higher. That's because the revenues of the league are bigger and therefore more money is available. Nevertheless, the pay gap between male and female professionals is significantly greater than it should be. According to an analysis by the business magazine "Forbes" NBA players get around 50 percent of the league set. For women, the proportion of sales that reaches the professionals, therefore, is 22.8 percent.

For comparison: The highest-paid collective agreement in the WNBA provides for a seasonal salary of 113,500 US dollars. Such contracts are reserved for absolute top players. In the NBA, the minimum wage is $ 838,464. There are 46 players who get 20 million or more for this season.

The "Forbes" analysis uses star player Sylvia Fowles to determine the extent to which she is underpaid, and WNBA would pass on the same percentage of sales to her players as the NBA. Thus, the Minnesota Center would have an annual salary of $ 1.22 million based on its athletic performance. In fact, she only gets 109,000. Her part-time jobs took the 33-year-old 11 years into five different clubs in China, Russia and Turkey.